1957 - 1960

In 1957 we migrated to Australia. Travelling aboard the P&O Arcadia. My parents Nancy and Andrew split up not long after arriving in Australia. We settled in Cabramatta Migrant Hostel. I recall my sister Nancy playing in the dirt on the track running beside the hostel. One day my mother just wasn't there anymore and I was told she had gone to Melbourne. I found out as an adult many, many years later that she was only in the next town, Liverpool. Sister Nancy went with her (she was only 3). My brother Andrew and I were latch key kids for 3 years. We lived in one half of a Nissen Hut. The hostel canteen fed us and made our school lunches which we picked up after breakfast. Some of my adventures: I often went exploring usually with friends. Once we discovered a huge storm drain near Cabra Vale and traveled up in the dark until we got scared and hurried out. Another thrill was to get up on a stone railway bridge and in a little alcove watch the trains go by at close quarters and place pennies on the rail for the trains to flatten them. Another time we climbed a steel bridge underneath the trains above a river. One day with three others we made our way to the Georges River via Warwick farm Racecourse. We were running along beside the track when across our path a huge Frill Neck Lizard hissed and displayed it's wide open mouth and frill. I made an instant about turn and ran back towards the hostel the others following me saying what was it? Another time we were playing hide and seek in the hostel hut with a friend, Arthur Campbell. Arthur suggested that we go for a walk up to Cabramatta shops. He said wait here while he went into a toilet block. He came out and said look what I found! A 10 shilling note! We had a great time at the shops buying soft drink and lollies. Later that night my dad discovered that money was missing from his jacket pocket in the wardrobe. I told him about Arthur Campbell's find. Apparently he got a thrashing from has parents for stealing. In 1960 my Dad took Andy and I back to Scotland. I thought we would pick up Mum and Nancy from Melbourne on the way. Of course that didn't happen. We sailed on a Lloyd Trestino ship via the Suez Canal to Naples in Italy. hit a huge storm with waves, that looked like small mountains, crossing The Great Australian Bite. After sitting out the storm for 3 days in Fremantle we sailed via Jakarta, Singapore and Cochin in India where I saw people like ants on a building site, all manual labour. I was approached by a small boy 3 or 4 years old who said “me no mother, me no father, me need money” and held out his hand. I wanted to help but Dad said don’t or they’ll all be pestering us. Then we sailed on via the Suez Canal where ships ahead on a bend in the canal appeared to be sailing on the desert sand. Very hot late at night we went for a wander in Alexandria then on to Naples in Italy. I had my tenth birthday on board ship. From there traveling by train to Milan, then through Switzerland where I was awestruck by the mountains and valleys. Dad had the clever idea of getting out of the packed carriage and we moved into the empty first class carriage. At Basil, in the middle of the night, we felt shunting movement and heard our train powering away without it's first class carriages. After wandering about trying to explain the situation to non english speakers we got another train to Calais and then we crossed the English Channel by ferry to Dover then train again to Glasgow. The sound of the metal draft excluder on the door at 22 Langmuir Avenue was a joy of memory. We were back in Scotland.